JP2007530372A - Cup container made of fiber base material - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a cup package made of a fiber-based material, such as polymer-coated packaging board, comprising a cup (1) containing a packaged product (2) and a lid (6) closing the mouth of the cup. In accordance with the invention, the cup (1) has a collar (5) bent downwardly from the mouth of the cup and diverging from the cup skirt (3), and the lid (6) has a rim (8) oriented accordingly downwardly from the collar, the lid being fixed in position by heat-sealing between said collar and rim parts. For opening the package, the lid (6) can be equipped with a tear strip (11) surrounding its rim (8). In addition, the lid (6) may be nested with the cup (1), so that compression and friction between their opposite surfaces retain the lid in position in the reclosed package.

Description

  The present invention relates to a cup container made of fiber-based material comprising a cup containing the product contained in the container and a lid that closes the opening of the cup.

  Cups with heat-sealed tear-tab tab lids are often used as a portion pack, especially for liquid or moist food products. Typical products placed in the container include milk, yogurt, juice, water and dessert. Traditionally, such cups are made of plastic, such as polypropylene or polystyrene, while lids with opening tabs are made of aluminum. However, polymer coated paperboard, a more environmentally friendly material, is increasingly used as a material for cups and lids.

  Cup cups generally have a conical shape so that they are stacked before the product is placed and closed with a lid. The lid that closes the cup opening is flat and is heat-sealed to an edge tab that projects laterally from the cup opening. The lid can be provided with a flap protruding from its side to facilitate its removal.

  In the prior art cup containers described above, the tab at the edge of the cup to which the lid is heat sealed provides only a narrow support surface for the heat sealing tool. Therefore, the heat fusion part around the opening part of a cup becomes narrow. In cup containers filled close to the cup opening, the heat fusing tool may reach near the product contained in the container, thereby adversely affecting the heat-sensitive product.

  The main object of the present invention is to make changes to cup containers made of fiber-based materials such as packaging board to ensure that the lid is heated in the opening of the cup without compromising the product placed in the container. It is to be able to fuse. The container of the present invention that solves this problem has a collar that is bent downward from the opening and separated from the skirt of the cup, and the lid has a downwardly directed edge at which the lid is heated. It is characterized by being attached to the collar by fusing.

  In the container of the present invention, the collar of the cup serves as a heat seal support for the lid designed to fit the cup. This support is wider than the tabs at the edges of known cups. The width of the heat-sealing part surrounding the collar is wider and the lower side of the collar provides a support surface for the opposite part of the heat-sealing tool, so that the edge of the seam by pressing the edges of the collar and lid together Production is possible, and the distance from the product in the cup to the heated part of the tool is increased.

  A paperboard cup with a collar is disclosed per se by WO 03/068613. It describes a disposable paperboard cup with a collar for hot and cold beverages. However, such disposable cups sold on top of each other have no lid and no mention is made of the cup being closed.

  In the container of the present invention, the cup skirt may extend conically upward, and the cup collar may be gradually tapered downward conically. Skirts and collars can be formed by creasing and bending a sheet-like blank whose basic shape is part of a circular sector. The manufacture of such cups where the skirt and collar have the same taper angle is disclosed by WO 03/068613 mentioned above. Accordingly, the disclosure thereof is incorporated herein. The edge of the lid sealed to the cup is also conical so that it can be securely attached to the collar of the cup.

  The material used for the cup and lid may consist of wrapping paperboard with a polymer coating layer that is water repellent or water vapor tight. The polymer coating may be provided on one or both sides of the paperboard. The polymer coating layer on the top surface of the collar and on the bottom surface of the edge of the lid can serve as a means for heat sealing the container. If the inner surface of the cup and lid is provided with a multi-layer covering layer comprising at least one inner oxygen barrier layer and a heat-sealing layer covering it, the container becomes moisture resistant and oxygen resistant.

  In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the container lid comprises a recess defined by a conical surface and nested with the cup, and therefore between the cup skirt and the opposing conical surface of the lid recess. It is held in place in a container whose lid is closed by friction and / or compression. This solution allows the opened container to be closed again, thus eliminating the need to consume the contents of the container at once.

  It is also possible to form a recess in the lid of the container for the purpose of receiving the bottom surface of the container placed on top when the containers are stacked. Such indentations save space and increase stack stability.

  The container of the present invention can be opened by means of an annular tear strip provided in the region of the lid edge. The tear strip is an annular stripe that is defined by two aligned perforations and can be removed by pulling.

  The tear strip may be a stripe between the row of perforations and the edge of the lid, in which case the heat seal is located in the area of the tear strip and is a peelable seal that is peeled off when the strip is removed. It is necessary. When the tear strip is placed inside the sealing line, a peelable seal is not necessary.

  The perforation perforation that defines the tear strip can be formed to penetrate the paperboard layer of the lid but leave the polymer coating directly below it. In this manner, the perforations do not break the water vapor and / or oxygen barrier achieved by the container's polymer coating and heat fusion. When the container is opened, the stripes that form the opening band are removed with the polymer coating anyway. In other words, the coating is torn along both edges of the band without hindering removal of the band and the adjacent lid from the cup collar.

  The present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  The cup container of FIG. 1 is a food and beverage portion pack with a lid manufactured from polymer-coated packaging paperboard. The food and drink may be, for example, a beverage, dessert or snack that is suitable for consumption at once in this type of container.

  The container of FIG. 1 comprises a cup 1 containing a product 2 placed in the container. The skirt 3 of the cup has a shape that spreads upward in a conical shape. The skirt 3 forms a collar 5 that is bent at the opening 4 of the cup and spreads downward in a conical shape. The cup 1 can be manufactured by the technique described in WO03 / 068613. The taper angles of the cup skirt 3 and the collar 5 are the same.

  In addition to the cup to be covered, the cup container includes a lid 6 mainly composed of a disk-shaped central portion 7 and a peripheral edge portion 8 that extends downward in a conical shape and rests on a collar 5. The central part 7 is arranged in a shallow recess 14 in the lid 6. The indent receives the bottom of the container that is placed on top when the containers are stacked. The lid 6 is manufactured by joining the center 7 and the edge 8 with a technique known per se used to seal the skirt and bottom of the paperboard cup. The cup collar 5 and the lid edge 8 are joined together by a thermal fusing 9 that surrounds the cup and forms a paperboard polymer coating. For opening of the container, an opening band 11 defined by two aligned perforations 10 is formed along the edge 8 of the lid. There is a protruding flap 12 at the end of the band.

  The cup container shown in FIG. 2 differs from that of FIG. 1 mainly with respect to the design of the lid 6. The lid 6 is designed to fit the top of the cup skirt 3 and the collar 5 so as to have a conical edge 8 that is securely attached to the collar and a conical section 13 that is nested with the skirt. The This conical portion terminates in a central part 7 located in a recess 14 formed in the lid. The skirt 3 and the conical portion 13 are dimensioned so that the lid 6 is held in place in the opening of the cup 1 by mutual compression or friction after the tear strip 11 is removed. However, the lid 6 can be removed from the cup 1 by pulling it, and after consuming the product 2, it can be pushed back against the cup opening to close the cup. Such re-closeable containers are particularly suitable for snack products and confectionery that do not necessarily consume all at once. In the same manner as in FIG. 1, the indentation 14 in the lid can receive the bottom of the container placed on top when the container is stacked.

  FIGS. 3 and 4 show in more detail the operation of the multilayer structure of the polymer-coated wrapping paperboard used in the container of the present invention, the heat fusion part for joining the container parts, and the opening band for opening the container. The cup contained in the container and its collar, as well as the lid, its center and edge, for example, an inner oxygen flavor barrier layer 16 made of, for example, ethyl vinyl alcohol copolymer (EVOH) or polyamide (PA), and, for example, low density polyethylene It consists of a cup board 15 which is extrusion coated with an outer heat sealing layer 17 made of (LDPE). At the cup collar 5 and the lid edge 8, the polymer coatings of the paperboard bear against each other as shown in FIG. 3, and in the thermal fusion 9, the opposing thermal fusion layers 17 surround the container. Are sealed together to form an annular sealing line.

  FIG. 3 shows that an opening band 11 defined by the perforation 10 is formed inside the heat-sealing line 9 of the lid edge 8. The perforation 10 penetrates the paperboard layer 15 at the edge 8 but does not extend to the paperboard coating layers 16, 17. The protruding flap 12 that forms the end of the tear strip 11 may be placed at the seam (not shown) on the side of the edge and is realized by a suitable design of the blank used for the edge. Can do. The container is opened by pulling the tear strip 11 with the flap 12, thereby removing the lid other than the strip 18 on the outside of the tear strip and thus the tear strip at the lid edge. The stripe remains in place when the lid is sealed to the collar 5 of the cup and the lid is opened as shown in FIG.

  In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 5, the tear strip 19 comprises a separate band. The band is for example made of metal or hard plastic and is embedded between the material layer forming the collar 5 of the cup and the material layer forming the edge 8 of the lid. The paperboard layer 15 at the edge 8 is provided with perforations 10 on both sides of the band 19 for easy removal. When the container is opened, the tear strip 19 breaks the stripe 11 defined by the perforation 10, thereby peeling the lid edge 8 and covering the lid except for the outermost stripe 18 as described above. Is removed. The opening operation results as shown in FIG.

  6 and 7 show an embodiment of an opening band based on heat sealing between the cup and lid and a seal that is removed when the band is removed, ie a peelable seal. The paperboard 15 forming the lid is coated with a barrier layer 16, which may be similar to that described above, and a heat sealing layer 17, for which a peelable seal type polymer material is selected. The paperboard 15 used for the cup is likewise coated with a polymer barrier layer 20 which acts as a sealing opposite surface at the collar 5. The barrier layer 20 may be made of, for example, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and the heat-sealing layer 17 of the lid may be made of, for example, ethylene methyl acrylic acid copolymer (EMA), ethyl vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA), and polyamide It may be made of a polymer composition as described in WO 03/033258 containing a mixture of waxes and can be sealed to peel off into the PET layer. However, the cup and lid coverings 17, 20 may be composed of other polymeric materials that are sealed together in a similar manner so as to peel off. The unsealing band 11 is defined by the perforation line 10 and is disposed at the edge of the lid so that the entire heat-sealing portion 9 is disposed within the area of the unsealing band. The container is opened by gripping the flap 12 and pulling on the tear strip 11 which can be removed by peeling along the seal line 9 from the material of the collar 5. When the tear strip 11 is removed, the lid is completely removed from the cup. In other words, as seen in FIG. 7, there is no lid part left at the collar 5 of the cup.

  It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the embodiments described above, but can be modified within the scope of the appended claims.

It is a fragmentary sectional view of the cup container with a lid of the present invention. It is a fragmentary sectional view of the other cup container with a lid of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a heat-sealed portion and an opening band between a cup skirt and a lid edge in the container of FIGS. FIG. 4 is a view of the seal location after the container is opened, corresponding to FIG. 3. FIG. 4 is a diagram of one embodiment of an optional selection of a tear strip corresponding to FIG. 3. It is a figure of one Example corresponding to FIG. FIG. 7 is a view of the seal location after the container is opened, corresponding to FIG. 6.

Claims (13)

  A cup container comprising a cup (1) comprising a product (2) made of fiber-based material and placed in a container, and a lid (6) for closing the opening of the cup, wherein the cup (1) A downwardly directed edge comprising a collar (5) bent downward from the opening (4) and separated from the skirt (3) of the cup, wherein the lid (6) is secured thereto by thermal fusion A container, characterized in that it has a part (8).   2. Container according to claim 1, characterized in that the skirt (3) of the cup (1) extends upwards conically.   3. Container according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the collar (5) of the cup and the edge (8) of the lid extend conically downwards.   The cup according to claim 1, characterized in that the cup (1) is made of polymer-coated paperboard (15) and at least the inner surface of the cup skirt (3) and the outer surface of the collar (5) are polymer-coated. A container according to any one of the above.   A container according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the lid (6) is made of polymer-coated paperboard (15) and at least the inner surface of the lid is polymer-coated.   Container according to claims 4 and 5, characterized in that the polymer coating of the paperboard (15) comprises an inner oxygen barrier layer (16) and an outer heat fusion layer (17).   The lid (6) comprises in its center a recess (14) defined by a conical surface (13) and nested with the cup (1), whereby the skirt (3) of the cup and the lid A container according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the lid is held in place in the closed container again by friction and / or compression between opposing conical surfaces of the recess.   A container according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that a recess (14) is formed in the center of the lid (6) to receive the bottom of the container on top when the container is stacked. .   An annular opening strip (11, 19) surrounding the lid is provided in the region of the edge (8) of the lid (6) for opening the container. A container according to any one of the above.   10. Container according to claim 9, characterized in that the tear strip is an annular stripe (11) defined by two aligned perforations and removed when peeled off.   The tear strip is an annular stripe (11 ′) defined between the perforation line (10) and the edge of the lid, and the lid (6) is located in the collar (5) of the cup. The container according to claim 9, wherein the container is sealed so as to be peeled off from the stripe region, and comes off when peeled off.   A perforation in the perforation line (10), leaving the polymer coating (16, 17) directly through and under the paperboard layer (15) of the lid (6). Item 10. The container according to Item 10 or 11.   A container according to any preceding claim, characterized in that the container is a portion pack for foodstuffs such as beverages, desserts or confectionery.

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